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State Disclosures. Some microplastics are even small by design, like the microbeads used in facial scrubs or the microfibers in polyester clothing. About half the cost of making biodegradable polymers is the cost of feedstock. Come with external costs 9. Killing wildlife 5. Single-use plastics are most commonly used for packaging and serviceware, such as bottles, wrappers, straws, and bags. (Source: Water in the West), Analysis reveals how restoring relatively narrow forest buffers could substantially improve regional water quality and carbon storage in Costa Rica and elsewhere. The first answer to this question that comes to everyones mind is to stop using plastic bags, right? 10 Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? Plastic is putting a strain on waste management systems, our oceans, and vulnerable communities the world over. America Needs a Plastics Intervention. It means that most bags can be recycled. You should examine what alternatives are available and whether local retailers, who often operate with a limited monthly budget, have the ability to make the switch. InCalifornia, a bill to ban straws unless requested at dine-in restaurants is awaiting a signature from the governor. In the spirit of eliminating waste, plastic straws appeared to be a way to further the cause: straws aren't essential to the dining experience, and by banning them, oceans, streets, and general society would theoretically benefit. (Photo credit: Shutterstock). Why Plastic Straws Are Being Banned - Square Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' Advocates hope a straw ban will be the first step toward broader plastic prohibitions. Talk to the owners of the restaurants you frequent. Such is the case with many environmental crises: the worst effects are pushed onto overburdened communities with the fewest resources to fight back. LEAPE:Plastic straws are only a tiny fraction of the problem less than 1 percent. Recently, however, plastic straws have been the subject of many plastic bans in an attempt to help the environment. The crucial challenge is to ensure that these bans are just a first step. The upshot of the Sydney study is that the California bag ban reduced plastic bag consumption by 71.5% - a huge decrease. Companies are forced to innovate, rethinking their designs and sourcing sustainable materials. Starbucks plans to phase out plastic straws by 2020. Read more about us. According to a study that was published by Bloomberg News, it is predicted that the percentage of contaminated ocean water that is caused by plastic straws and stirrers is a shockingly modest 0.03 percent. These pieces can be so small that they are invisible to our eye. Each year on two far-flung Australian islands, more than half a million hermit crabs die after becoming trapped inside our plastic waste. To date, around 60 countries and municipalities around the world have instituted plastic bag bans, and additional seven countries are planning to enforce the law in the closest future. A last example of a true horror caused by plastic has been discovered just recently. As for reusable straws, they arent flexible as plastic ones and can be easily forgotten at home. What can I do for you? For most, straws are not a necessity, but a convenience. A recent report showed that plastic production contributes to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions at every point in its life cycle. Busca trabajos relacionados con Reasons why smoking should be banned articles o contrata en el mercado de freelancing ms grande del mundo con ms de 22m de trabajos. Tushy Ace Review (After 3 Months): Is this Luxury Bidet Worth it? We are working hard to improve our content. Criddle isdirector of StanfordsCodiga Resource Recovery Center,a member ofStanford Bio-Xand an affiliate of thePrecourt Institute for Energy. 1 producer of plastic waste in the world. For the oceans sake, wed better hope so. When you sip beverages through a straw you end up inhaling more air into your belly than you would otherwise. Instead of searching for another buyer, maybe some soul-searching is in order. These steps are pretty straight forward and depend on your own initiative. We do not know the full impact of microplastics exceeding the mass of plankton in the ocean. Unfortunately, such a high level of pollution doesnt come without consequences. Buy in bulk. 2. Have a look yourself to imagine the suffering of these animals. Thats bad news for our carbon reduction goals: if plastic production continues unabated, its greenhouse gas emissions could reach 1.34 gigatons per year by 2030equal to adding nearly 300 new coal-fired power plantseven as the need to curb global climate change becomes more urgent. Well, before putting it into the laundry basket, take a look at it closely. At the beginning of July 2018, Seattle became the largest U.S. city to ban plastic straws. In countries with a lack of awareness about negative impacts of plastic bags, a polite refusal might not be met with much understanding. Your email address will not be published. that do collect plastic bags and other plastic films and send them for proper recycling. This amount of marine life, which includes fish and turtles, is sufficient to fill 125 school buses. Heres everything you need to know before plastic carryout bags disappear from the Empire State on March 1. This includes grocery plastic bags, Ziplock-type bags, dry cleaning bags and bread bags. On average, taxpayers end up paying about $88 per year just on plastic bag waste [15]. 6461 garfield street hollywood, fl. The problem with plastic straws is that they are one of the biggest causes of unnecessary plastic pollution. (Some places are going so far as to ban single-use plastics entirely; most notably, India intends to go this route by 2022.) Juan Cristobal Cobo/Bloomberg via Getty Images. We add another 8 million tons each year thats about five grocery bags full of plastic waste on every foot of shoreline around the world, according to a recent study. Thus, plastic straws cant be recycled. and reefs composed of coral, F) I Plastic straws are one of the top five most often used items. Most of it is either dumped in landfills or ends up in the ocean. According to some estimates, the cost of plastic bag cleanup is about 17 cents per bag [14] and the cost is paid by us once again. Some companies are taking initiative on their own. Plastic straws are also the 6th most common trash item found during ocean cleanups. These modern conveniences are so ubiquitousand so quickly thrown outthat they hardly register in our minds. How exactly does the use of plastic do harm to the environment?Plastic has a very long half-life in the environment, during which it poses a danger to animals and spreads toxic chemicals.Additionally, plastic is a contributor to the warming of the planet.Nearly every type of plastic is manufactured using chemicals that are leftover from the manufacturing of fossil fuels, which contribute to global warming (gas, oil and even coal). We should also try to give up plastic straws if we are capable of doing so. For example, millions of discarded plastic bags clog water drainage channels and sewers in urban areas of Bangladesh. You are free to have your own personal opinion on whether or not we should ban plastic straws. A laboratory photograph of microplastics found in the Corsica River in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, Maryland, An albatross found dead with a belly full of plastic on Midway Atoll. The first is to invest in better waste collection in the handful of countries that account for most of the plastic flowing into the ocean. If plastic straws are completely banned, local small businesses like boba tea shops will have to look for pricier alternatives. Starbucks recently announced that it would phase out use of plastic straws by the year 2020. And, if you dont like wearing the same shirt or pants, Read More Dont wash it if it doesnt look dirtyContinue, At age 50, Kay is a little over halfway through her life as a driver. The answer isnt as simple as you may think: While its true that paper straws arent as harmful as plastic straws, this doesnt mean that, Read More Paper vs. There are many uses for plastic that are not only reasonable but important, such as surgical gloves, or straws for people with disabilities. They are a part of our modern lives, and we dont tend to think much about them. In this essay on should plastic be banned, it is very important to put forth the fact that there are many bodies of health and environmental governance around the world who argue that plastic ban can be problematic stating the following reasons-. Sadly, one of their newly acquired enemies is created by us who should protect them instead. Speak out in support of local plastic bans, whether by calling your local government representative, submitting an op-ed to your citys newspaper, or simply starting conversations with neighbors. Plastic bags have become such a nuisance because we as consumers use them excessively even when not needed and authorities havent figured out effective ways of dealing with them as waste. However, as an environmental enthusiast, heres what I think about this ban. Which brings us to the second part. China doesnt want our plastic waste anymore. A study analyzes water transactions that leave water in the river, and shows how they could be scaled up to avert cuts for major water users while supporting imperiled ecosystems. Reasons why smoking should be banned articles jobs Pack it alongside reusable cutlery (like wood, bamboo, or metal chopsticks) for sustainable eating on the go. The country instituted the ban in 2013 to minimize livestock deaths. Shuddering and unable to breathe, he vomited up five plastic bags. Plastic is more sanitary and safer to use than other alternatives. An additional problem with plastic grocery bags recycling is their cleanliness. Facebook; Contact Now . Already in 2001, researchers found that the mass of microscopic plastic fragments in the North Pacific Central Gyre was 6 times higher than of plankton. Theyre in about a quarter of the seafood in our markets, and even in table salt. One recent survey found plastics in 94 percent of tap water samples in the U.S. and in nearly every brand of bottled water. This measure should encourage people to switch to reusable alternatives. New research shows their prolific dam building benefits river water quality so much, it outweighs the damaging influence of climate-driven droughts. If you are constantly feeling gassy, then you should definitely consider drinking beverages the old fashioned way. A straw with our iced coffee, a plastic bag to carry our takeout, a wrapper on a candy bar: taken individually, each seems harmless. In early January 2020, China joined the growing movement of more than 120 countries pledging to ban single-use plastics.The country of 1.4 billion citizens is the No. Learn how your comment data is processed. Help us break the cycle of causing unnecessary harm and damage in the name of "convenience". The Pasig River is the eight worst source of ocean plastic pollution in the world. Companies are trying to sell communities on a toxic solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. Another indirect danger of plastic bags has breeding ground in the pollution they create. Straws made of paper are neither recyclable nor capable of decomposition. These microscopic plastic fragments, no more than 5 millimeters long, are hard to detectand are just about everywhere. And Starbucks, which uses an estimated one billion plastic straws per year, is phasing them out in favor of paper ones. Plastic, in general, is one of the biggest pollutants in the world. You cannot recycle them in the regular curbside collection of plastic, but you should be able to find many larger food stores and retailers (for example: Target, Walmart, Tesco, Morrisons, etc.) Don't Ban Straws - Reason.com On their long journey, they will encounter many difficulties and only a small portion of them will survive. They discovered that Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Nestl products were found most often. For those governments that are opposed to full bans on plastic bags, another option is to institute a plastic bag tax, where consumers or retailers would pay a small fee for each plastic bag. Criddle has evaluated use of microorganisms to biodegrade plastic materials and to synthesize biodegradable bioplastics from waste feedstocks. NRDCs Eric Goldstein gives the scoop on the latest environmental villain and explains why plastic straws really are a big menace to our oceans. McDonalds swapped its plastic straws for paper at its United Kingdom and Ireland restaurants. Thanks for signing up. The second, more fundamental imperative is to get plastics out of our waste stream. Required fields are marked *. As part of the Break Free From Plastic movement, Greenpeace volunteers conducted an audit of plastic pollution along coastlines, sifting through tens of thousands of individual pieces across 42 countries to identify the pollutions sources.